Nearly One in Four Kindergarten Slots Are Set Aside for Current Students' Siblings

Nearly one in four kindergarten spots in New York City's most competitive gifted-and-talented programs have been set aside this fall for siblings of current students, almost twice the rate from two years ago, the city said Tuesday.

ENLARGE

Of the 304 offers sent out last week to parents of incoming kindergartners, 72—or 24%—went to siblings of current students, up from 45 out of 347 spots in 2011, or 13%.

The figures compounded the frustration felt by parents whose children, despite receiving top scores, weren't offered a spot in one of the five gifted programs that accept students who score in the 97th percentile or above from across the city.

"That is the most insane thing I've ever heard, and I do plan on writing a letter to Bloomberg," said Michael Krigsfeld, whose son scored in the 99th percentile but didn't get into any gifted programs. "It won't be a pleasant-sounding one, either."

This year has been a wrenching one for parents of children vying for a seat in one of the citywide programs or in dozens of district gifted programs, which have a lower bar and take students from within the geographic area. Several testing errors disclosed in the spring meant thousands more children were eligible for the programs than initially thought, and some parents said that hurt their children's chances.

After the scoring errors by test publisher
Pearson
PLC, the city decided not to penalize students whose adjusted scores would have disqualified them from admission. It is unclear whether the scoring errors led to more siblings qualifying for seats, and the city didn't return a request for comment on the matter.

Pearson apologized and paid a penalty, and on Tuesday referred questions to the city.

In the district programs, which are open to students who score in the 90th percentile and above, the number of seats that went to siblings also rose—to 17% in 2013 from 12% in 2011

Some parents said their children with top scores didn't receive offers for district programs.

The Department of Education played down the increase in sibling placements.

"The rise in sibling offers in citywide programs over the last two years does not reflect a trend—it's a difference of less than 30 offers total," spokesman Devon Puglia said. "That means that, this year compared to 2011, there were only a dozen or so more offers to students who also had eligible siblings."

The policy of giving siblings a leg-up is praised by parents who say it helps keep families together and reduces the stress of having to figure out cross-borough transportation. But for those trying to get their first child into the program, it can seem unfair that a boy or girl who scored in the 97th percentile gets to skip ahead of a child with a perfect score.

Many more children score in the 99th percentile than the district can accommodate in the roughly 300 kindergarten seats available each year, so the seats that remain after accounting for siblings are awarded through a lottery.

Parents sometimes joke about adopting children or having another baby to allow them to get the sibling preference.

In the fall, the city had initially said it would change its scoring practices in a way that would greatly reduce the sibling advantage.

But parents complained, and the Department of Education reversed course, prompting a lawsuit from parents who questioned the scoring methodology and sibling preference policy. The city won the first battle in court, but the parents are appealing.

James Vignone, 35 years old, who lives on the Upper East Side, said his 4-year-old daughter Alessandra didn't win a seat in a citywide program but would accept an offer for a district program in Chelsea, despite the long commute. He and his wife had thought about asking his company for a transfer to Tampa, Fla., if she didn't win a seat in a district school.

"Do I think this is going to make or break her happiness in life? No," he said. But, he said, "When you have something that's so sought-after, it's frustrating."

Mr. Krigsfeld, 36, of Brighton Beach, said he and his wife might move to New Jersey.

"New York state is going to lose a student who scored in the 99th percentile who can contribute to this state, and he's going to contribute elsewhere," he said.

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